Picnic
by Robin Pendragon
Summary: Lizzy deals with the emotional aftermath of the incidents aboard the Campania.


***I do not own Kuroshitsuji or any of the characters.***

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><p>The young girl gazed at herself in the large mirror of her bedroom. She was no longer a 'girl', and was struggling with that fact. Each year, she grew taller by at least a few inches, not to mention the other changes her body was going through. Sure, this was natural, as an educated young lady of high standing she knew this. But she was not anticipating growing alone.<p>

And this is what this felt like.

Upon the return of her betrothed, Elizabeth had felt an overwhelming sense of joy, but it only lasted for as long as it took her to realize that he had not returned alone. It was not the butler, but his personal demons that haunted him, whatever trauma she knew he had lived and would not talk to anybody about, especially not her. But she did not push him. She waited, and was attentive, and showed her affection for him in the only way she could.

Her mother had talked to her about her suspicions of the trauma that Ciel suffered. There was no way of knowing, but the shadows in Ciel's blue eyes spoke a thousand words that she knew his mouth wouldn't. He was small in stature, his growth stunted as a result. She was gentle in her approach, as gentle as she could be. She was "cute" and wore frilly clothes, and tried to paint herself as the furthest thing from a threat as she could. She didn't want him to know the real Lizzy, the confident, strong young lady she truly was. She had to make him feel strong and confident, help him feel like there was somebody he could protect, for his own sake.

But all that had disappeared that day on that ship. Ciel had seen her true colors.

She had been so embarrassed at first. After the ship had docked, things had apparently returned to normal. Now he had invited her on a picnic. She'd been thrilled of course, but she knew him better. Ciel did not plan dates with her if he didn't have an ulterior motive. She worried what that could be. She worried that he would tell her he could not be associated with someone so unladylike, or worse, a person who had lied to him for so long. Deep inside, she knew it was irrational, but she worried her worse fears would become true.

"Lady Elizabeth, your carriage is here," Paula's voice interrupted her train of thought. She turned from the mirror to offer the woman a half-hearted smile and left.

At the front of her house, her carriage waited. She greeted the footman and Sebastian warmly and boarded. Inside, Ciel waited. He half-smiled at her, and she gave him her best smile in return. She did not hug him this time. She took a seat across from him. Paula took her seat separate, with the footman.

She thought Ciel looked dashing, of course, even with the ever present shadows in his eyes. He wore a dark blue outfit with black accents. She noticed a basket to his side, and vaguely wondered what sort of treats he had brought along for their picnic. Rather, what sort of treats Sebastian had prepared for them.

Rather than engage him in a one-sided conversation, she opted to look out the window at the trees as they passed them by. Once or twice she thought she saw him looking her way, from the corner of her eye, but when she glanced to confirm, he would turn back to the window.

"Where are we going?" she asked, successfully faking a joyful tone.

He answered simply, "You'll see."

She returned to admire the trees.

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><p>The carriage stopped some time later. They were in some sort of secluded park. In fact, she had felt as though they'd gone into the woods, but by the looks of it, it was a park with a beautiful setup. It was simple, located next to a small stream, and she could hear a waterfall a bit of a ways further.<p>

Dejected as she may have felt initially, to the core she was an admirer of natural beauty. Her green eyes sone and widened, and her mouth parted just a bit as she looked upon the surroundings in wonder.

"This is a lovely park, Ciel! How ever did you come across it?"

One glance at her betrothed told her he was glad she liked it. He knew her well, after all, better than she thought. It was moments like these when she felt he truly paid attention to her despite how aloof he always appeared with her.

His response was a small half smile as he extended his hand. She took it gladly.

"I came across it some time ago while on a hunting trip."

"It's beautiful! We must walk up the stream, I'd very much like to see the waterfall!"

He was silent.

Their picnic blanket was set up in the center of the clearing, adjacent to the stream, but not too close so that they would get wet or be unable to hear themselves speaking.

"Thank you for bringing me here," she smiled as he led her to take a seat upon the lush blanket. Decorative flowers adorned the center and the basket was open in front of them. To the side, a bit further away, Sebastian had some sort of bonfire set up, where she figured he was doing the cooking.

"I knew you would appreciate it," he said.

Paula and Snake, she noticed, were seated further away from them. Far enough so they could still have privacy, but close enough that Paula could do her job of waiting on her Lady.

Lizzy wanted to get it off her chest, this thing she'd been concerned about. How did the incident aboard the ship affect their relationship, now that he had seen her true colors?

"Ciel, I..." she started, unsure of what to say exactly, "about the... incident. I didn't intend to..."

"You were amazing," he interrupted, the smallest of smiles adorning his face.

She'd found it difficult to find the words before, but at this, was rendered speechless. _Amazing_. The word etched itself in her head.

He _didn't_ think she was unladylike, or dishonest, for having hidden that from him. She'd had those fears, and he'd known. Somehow, he had known. Somehow, he always knew.

He knew her well, better than she thought.

When he looked at her then, Lizzy saw something beyond the shadows of his eyes. She saw a flicker -just a tiny sparkle- of joy.

And despite her shock at his description of her, Lizzy could finally smile genuinely once again, and hope returned to her as fluid as the water into that stream.

Yes, it was moments like these when she felt he truly appreciated her.

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><p>Please review ^_^<p> 


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